Activate your DirecTV subscription once the satellite TV dish is deployed and all of the components are connected. To ensure that your DirecTV subscription is active and to check the entertainment package you purchased, call (888)777-2454.
Which way should I aim my DirecTV dish?
Prior to testing, start with a southern-pointing direction. When directed in that direction, the Dish satellites are aligned to the south and will calibrate more readily.
Where should I point my satellite dish?
Your satellite dish must have the proper horizontal dish alignment, also known as an azimuth position, in order to receive a clear, uninterrupted signal.
The horizontal alignment describes the position of the signal-emitting satellite. As a result, your dish must face either east or west, depending on which direction you want to receive the signal.
Your azimuth alignment will be determined by where you are. Finding the perfect horizontal alignment for your satellite dish is always recommended first since it makes finding the correct elevation alignment for your satellite dish much easier.
- Determine the azimuth setting your satellite dish requires. This information is freely accessible online or on the Astra website.
- Using an adjustable wrench, loosen the nuts on the mounting collar of the dish once it has been installed at the desired location.
- Stand behind the dish and rotate the magnetic compass horizontally until the needle aligns with the north and south dial readings.
- When using your magnetic compass, be mindful that metal buildings can cause interference with your readings.
- Rotate the satellite dish in the direction indicated by the degrees on the compass – for inspiration, look at the location of your neighbor’s dish.
- With the wrench, tighten the nuts on the mounting collar after the dish is in the proper place.
Without a meter, how do I align my DIRECTV dish?
The NFL season openers and salted caramel popcorn beckoned, and I had already stocked the minibar with beer.
Rain and snow are the typical suspects, but the beautiful sky that evening allowed me to practically see the stars.
To get the signal back on my TV, they rotated the dish a degree to the left and another upwards!
The problem could have been fixed with no fancy meters or tools, yet they charged me for the whole cost of diagnosing and repair, which took less than ten minutes.
As a result, I learned more about dish alignment and signal strength so that if calamity strikes again, I won’t waste time or money hiring professionals.
I aspired to be a first responder, and this post provides all I’ve learned about determining signal strength without using a satellite meter.
To locate a satellite signal without using a meter, rotate your dish for horizontal adjustment, then vertical adjustment for elevation. Work with a partner who can keep an eye on the television’s signal strength.
Why isn’t my satellite dish transmitting a signal?
This problem is frequently caused by a slightly off-kilter satellite dish, broken or malfunctioning equipment, bad weather, or something blocking the dish’s view of the sky. Your signal strength may limit the delivery of live programs, but you can still watch recorded content if you have a DVR.
For local channels, which satellite does DirecTV use?
T10 (previously DirecTV-10) is a Boeing type 702 direct broadcast satellite that delivers DirecTV subscribers in North America with high-definition television (HDTV). On July 7, 2007, International Launch Services launched it from Kazakhstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome atop an Enhanced Proton Breeze-M rocket. The satellite was transferred to its operational position at 103.0 west longitude after nearly two months of in-orbit testing. T8, which was launched on May 22, 2005, and T5, which was launched on May 7, 2002, were the first two DirecTV satellites to be launched on a Proton rocket. In 2017, the satellite was renamed T10.
In 2004, DirecTV agreed to build three identical 702 type satellites with Boeing: DirecTV-10, 11 and 12. DirecTV-11 debuted on March 19, 2008, followed by DirecTV-12 on December 29, 2009. The satellites were purchased to greatly enhance the number of national and local HDTV channels available on DirecTV. All satellites have been renamed to the T-suffix since then.
What level of precision does a satellite dish require?
This section is still about planning your satellite dish alignment, but it’s more so now that you’re getting ready to accomplish it. Rather than simply determining coordinates, which you should have done before now.
Dishpointer App Help Identify The Satellite Arc
There are many free and premium satellite alignment apps available. The Dishpointer App, which I believe costs roughly 10, allows you to hold your phone up to the satellites and, using the camera and your geographic coordinates, it will map out on screen where the satellites appear in the sky on the horizon when calibrated correctly. This is critical to get right when installing motorized satellite dishes since it can help you visualize where the satellites are and identify any line-of-sight concerns, such as clearance of a nearby obstruction. Just keep in mind that the vast majority of the time you are not physically angling the satellite back reflector (the big round portion) to this when matching your satellite elevation, as most of the dishes placed are offset satellite dishes. The satellite signals are shot down at whatever angle they are in your location, and then reflected back at a different angle to the LNB that sits beneath. This is done so that the LNB does not block the signal, and it is the reason why Sky mini-dishes do not appear to be pointing to the Sky at all. There are satellite dishes known as primefocus satellite dishes that have the LNB installed in the center; these are often significantly larger because the LNB blocks a portion of the signal and the entire dish must be tilted up towards the satellite. Satellite dishes of this type become increasingly prevalent as you get closer to the equator, when the satellites are much higher in the sky.
I wouldn’t put your faith in the results it provides because they can be hit or miss. Instead, I would recommend utilizing a compass and inclometer, but not everyone has one sitting around as they have a Smartphone.
Compass/ Inclometer
There’s nothing like a good old compass and inclometer to easily detect a satellite angle, and I much prefer using one of them. One of the advantages of utilizing one of these is that it can be pulled out quickly and does not require electricity or a WIFI or mobile internet signal. My imclometer/compass cost over 50, but it has saved me hours of testing for satellite signal directions. The disadvantage of using a compass to find your azimuth angle (east/west) is that it will direct you to magnetic south rather than due south. Although these are often the same, the magnetic field around the earth changes and there can be as much as a few degrees difference, which can be disastrous when aligning satellite dishes. I even saw a video lately that said that in the not-too-distant future, the entire Earth’s magnetic field could totally rotate, causing compasses to point north. However, I’m not sure if they’ll still be putting up satellite dishes when that happens!
I recommend going to this website to discover the current magnetic south/ due south comparison so you know how many degrees to account for while positioning your satellite dish.
Satellite Dish Alignment Tool TV Spectrum Analyser
I’ve already mentioned that the field meter I use for satellitedish alignments cost me a few thousand pounds, although there are extremely nice satellite-only ones available for only a few hundred pounds. If you have the money, I would buy one, but you must align satellite dishes on a semi-regular basis; otherwise, you might as well hire an aerial and satellite firm to do it for you, which we can do if you live in Sussex or South Kent.
My meter, among other things, will allow me to see the signals and transponders in near realtime as I move the satellite dish about to find the one I want. When you do this frequently enough, you’ll eventually learn what they look like on your screen based on the frequencies that the transponders appear on. For example, I can determine what Astra 2, Astra 1, and Hotbird look like without knowing anything else about them, but if I were looking for another satellite, I’d need more information. I look in the region identified by Dishpointer or my compass, and when I locate something, I may scan one of the channels automatically, and my metre will tell me what satellite my satellite dish is oriented to with an azimuth angle, using the information I’ve already obtained from Kingofsat. I could then determine whether my dish should be directed east or west based on this information. For example, if I located Astra 2 at 28.2 and wanted to find Astra 3 at 23.5, I’d know that I needed to angle my satellite dish 4.7 degrees farther west, as well as slightly raise the elevation as we get closer todue south. If you’re going in the opposite direction, the situation is reversed. My meter shows me everything I need to know about signal strength and dependability once I’ve discovered the satellite. Demodulation allows me to display a TV picture on my screen even if I find an unencrypted service. This is useful for showing consumers that the satellite dish is operating when there is no other satellite equipment available, but it is not required if you comprehend dB, MER, C/N, and Bit Error Ratio measurements. These can be used to determine whether the satellite dish is operational (BER) and how reliable the signal is (typically expressed as a Carrier to Noise ratio (C/N), but for digital satellite TV broadcasts, a Modulation Error Ratio reading is preferable.
For your reference, a minimum signal strength of at least 52dB and a MER or C/Nreading of more than 12dB at the receiver end are required for reliable satellite reception.
If you’re going to buy a satellite alignment tool, look for one that offers the following features:
Bit error ratio readings to ensure that it’s operating; if you grasp this, it’ll tell you a lot more than just the TV picture.
Recognize satellites This will assist you make sure you’re pointing the dish in the right direction.
DVBS-2Compatibility This is a newer, more efficient compression technique that is commonly used for HD broadcasts. As more broadcasts migrate to the DVB-S2 standard, your satellite alignment will last much longer.
Satellite Receiver Bleeper
Most satellite receivers will provide signal strength values, which will normally include a signal dependability or signalquality reading, similar to what you’d see on conventional Sky and Freesat boxes. Although the bars or percentage readings don’t represent anything, I mean that there is no such thing as a 100 percent satellite signal reading, as many people claim. Signals aren’t read in that way. It can be used as an approximate indicator of whether you have a strong or weak signal.
I wouldn’t try aligning a satellite dish with these readings, but if you do, I propose moving the dish at brief intervals and letting the satellite receiver around 10 seconds to check whether it can latch on the signal. Most generic satellite receivers in the UK, which are generally used for foreign TV, have a bleeper or squawk setting that emits an audible beep when the signal is at its strongest. You can use this to get your dish online if you can position it, perhaps with a window open so you can hear the beeps or highest pitch tones.
Once again, you must have your satellite dish pointed roughly in the right direction, so use the compass to determine your roughdirection first, otherwise you risk locking onto the wrong satellites, which will not provide you with the channels you desire. We utilize this strategy while building satellite broadband dishes because we can’t connect our analysers to the appropriate dishes because they’re incompatible, despite the fact that the dish itself would emit the audible tone instead of the satellite receiver.
What are the satellite numbers for Directv?
At 99, 101, and 103 defrees, DIRECTV has three primary satellite positions. They’re the ones in the center of the picture. There have been three different satellite locations used. The one on the far left is 119, which is currently being phased out. There’s also one at 110 degrees, which is used for Puerto Rico, one at 95 degrees, which is used for Latin America as well as US foreign communications, and one at 72.5 degrees, which you can see all the way to the right. That one is no longer in use.
The major three satellites, on the other hand, are aligned with the middle of the United States. Even though they’re near the equator, they’re perfectly positioned to cover the entire continental United States without difficulty.
Why is there no signal on my Directv?
Your receiver should be reset. Press the red reset button, which is usually found on the side of most DIRECTV receivers or inside the front panel’s access card door. Allow for a reboot of your receiver. If your receiver does not have a red reset button, follow these steps: Disconnect the receiver’s power cord from the outlet.